1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to surgical instruments, specifically, surgical instruments with a stitching end effector for forming stitches.
2. Background of the Invention
As medical and hospital costs continue to increase, surgeons are constantly striving to develop advanced surgical techniques. Advances in the surgical field are often related to the development of operative techniques which involve less invasive surgical procedures which reduce overall patient trauma. In this manner, the length of hospital stays and thus, medical costs can be significantly reduced.
One of the truly great advances to reduce the invasiveness of surgical procedures is endoscopic surgery. Endoscopic surgery involves surgery through body walls for example, viewing and/or operating on the ovaries, uterus, gall bladder, bowels, kidneys, appendix, etc. There are many common endoscopic surgical procedures, including arthroscopy, laparoscopy (pelviscopy), gastroentroscopy and laryngobronchoscopy, just to name a few. Typically, trocars are utilized for creating incisions through which the endoscopic surgery is performed. Trocar tubes or cannula devices are extended into and left in place in the abdominal wall to provide access for endoscopic surgical tools. A camera or endoscope is inserted through a trocar tube to permit the visual inspection and magnification of the body cavity. The surgeon can then perform diagnostic and therapeutic procedures at the surgical site with the aid of specialized instrumentation, such as, forceps, cutters, applicators, and the like which are designed to fit through additional cannulas.
In many surgical procedures, it is often necessary to suture body organs or tissue. Traditionally, suturing was accomplished by hand using a needle attached to a suture material. This procedure required open access to the tissue to be sutured. Upon the advent of endoscopic surgical procedures, endoscopic suturing instruments have been developed. The development of endoscopic suturing instruments is especially challenging because of the small openings through which the suturing of body organs or tissues must be accomplished.